Stripes
by illyrilex
Summary: Pre-KOF XIV: Vanessa's own hubris comes with unfortunate consequences.


**Initially a short scrap specifically for Discord, and then tumblr, I was ultimately convinced to post to the actual fic sites because, eh, why not. Anyway, The KOF timeline is really screwy, and Vanessa's canonical involvement in the latest tourney is questionable since she's DLC, but, like... those pants needed to be explained. So I stepped up and answered the call.**

* * *

"You have _got_ to be kidding me."

The crimson-haired mercenary agent named Vanessa quirked a brow, somewhat mystified by what lay on the table in front of her. She squinted down at the strange and revolting sight before turning to her companion, an on-again-off-again operative by the name of Ramon, who flashed her a huge grin.

"You agreed," he told her.  
"Yeah, but Ruiz was _not_ supposed to win that fight," Vanessa shot back heatedly.  
"But he did."

There was a certain smugness in Ramon's tone that made Vanessa want to paralyze him with a hit to the liver, but, because of her inquisitive nature, she decided against violence in favor of finding out more about the abomination he had presented her with.

"Where the hell did you even get this?"  
"I had a house show in Venice Beach last weekend," Ramon started. "While I was there I found a thrift shop that was being run by this little Mexican lady. I decided to look around and these caught my eye."

At that, Vanessa made a face.

"No pun intended," Ramon quickly told her. "Anyway, so, yeah. I, for one, think it's perfect."  
"Perfect for _what_?!"  
"That ass!"

Vanessa punched Ramon in the arm - hard - before stepping forward. She sighed as she picked up the ugliest pair of pants she had ever seen: A blend of purple cotton and polyester, there was no doubt that the fabric would, indeed, hug her ass in a way that would have been very flattering if not for the thick, vertical striped pattern on them. She narrowed her eyes as she held the offensive article of clothing out in front of her.

"Seth," Vanessa called to the man standing against the far wall, "Are you _seeing_ this?!"  
"Shouldn't have taken the bet, 'Nes," the man named Seth responded with a subtle shake of his head.

"Listen. Joshua was the undefeated favourite going into that fight! What happened was -"  
"What happened was you lost the bet," Seth interrupted calmly. "Why you _took_ the bet in the first place is beyond me, but now you've gotta keep up your end of the bargain."

Vanessa scowled. Seth was right, of course, but the wager had been too sweet to pass on: If _her_ fighter won - as he _should_ have - Ramon was to immediately curb his unwanted advances toward her: no more flirting, no more blatant disregard for her marriage. But if she lost…

"I don't see what the big deal is," Ramon said. "I have great fashion sense. It's a wonderful outfit."  
"My four-year old has better fashion sense than you."  
"It's true," Seth chimed in.

The three fell silent as Vanessa scrutinized the clothing Ramon purchased for her. She held the pants up against her legs with a sneer.

"These look a little long."  
"That's what these babies are for!" Ramon smiled as he approached the table and plucked a light brown sandal out of a shoebox. "Two-inch heels."  
"Yeah, because _those_ won't hinder my footwork in any way," Vanessa said dryly. She put the pants down so she could pick up the next article of clothing: a sleeveless white button down crop top that had lacy accents across the back and at the hem. It was almost cute.

Almost.

"This shirt is a small. I wear a large."  
"Large?" Seth and Ramon asked at the same time.  
"I have big breasts and big shoulders." Vanessa answered, a little unnerved by the clear lack of understanding among the men. She looked at the spacing of the buttons: one or more would definitely pop if she made any wrong moves. Maybe she could use her necktie to help keep them covered? Not that it really mattered, though - the whole ensemble was hideous. She was going to be the laughingstock of King of Fighters.

And it was all because she lost a bet.

* * *

_* The fight in question is the Anthony Joshua versus Andy Ruiz, which, I know, just happened a couple of weeks ago (from the date of posting this) but whatever. Like I said before, the KOF timeline is all kinds of fucked up.  
* According to what little is known about Vanessa's background, her child is four-years old_

_Okay, that's all I've got. Special thanks to my husband for some ideas, and to David Tai to helping me flesh some of this out. Thank youuuuu~!_


End file.
